This invention relates to a lubricating arrangement for an engine and more particularly to a lubricating arrangement for facilitating circulation of lubricant through an oil cooler and also for facilitating operation of the crankcase drain of the engine.
It is well known that internal combustion engines require numerous auxiliaries for their operation. These auxiliaries include, in most instances, a lubricating system including a lubricating pump for circulating lubricant through the engine, a cooling system including a cooling pump for circulating coolant through the engine's cooling jackets, and an oil cooler, if one is provided, and various other accessories.
In my copending application entitled "Engine Cooling System," Ser. No. 08/331,052, filed Oct. 28, 1994, and assigned to the assignee hereof, there is disclosed an engine construction arrangement wherein the driving of these auxiliaries and pumps is facilitated. In addition, the number of external conduits required to circulate the lubricant and coolant is reduced by forming these conduits, in major part, in the actual castings of the engine.
This invention relates to an improved feature of that design dealing partially with the oil cooler, its mounting, and how the lubricant and coolant are supplied to the oil cooler.
In engines it is well known that the lubricant, in addition to lubricating the engine, is frequently employed for assisting in the cooling of the engine. Thus, the lubricant gains heat not only through its lubricating function, but also through this cooling function. Since most lubricants have a temperature at which they begin to deteriorate, it is desirable to ensure that the lubricant is cooled so that it cannot exceed that temperature.
Various types of oil coolers have been proposed. Although coolers that operate to exchange heat directly to the air have some advantages, they obviously require external positioning and must be positioned so that air flow can cool the lubricant sufficiently. Thus, liquid-cooled oil coolers have a number of advantages over the air-cooled variety. However, when the engine coolant is utilized for cooling the oil through its oil cooler, then the number of external conduits may be increased.
It is, therefore, a principal object of this invention to provide an improved engine oil cooler arrangement wherein the oil cooler can be mounted in an area where it will be relatively unobtrusive, will still be positioned so as to facilitate servicing, and can be supplied with both lubricant and coolant through internal passages formed in the engine.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved oil cooler and oil filter arrangement for an engine that can be conveniently located where the oil filter can be serviced and yet the fluids can be delivered to and from it through internal components of the engine.
In wet sump engines, and even in the dry sump tank of a dry sump engine, the lubricant-receiving member has a drain plug in its lower end through which the lubricant can be drained for the purposes of oil changing, etc. Obviously these drain plugs are positioned at the lowest point in the oil tank so as to ensure that the lubricant can be completely drained.
It is also known that contaminants will enter the oil and may precipitate out in the oil pan. It is desirable to have these contaminants accumulate around the drain plug. This is desirable so that when the oil is changed, the accumulated contaminants can be removed. However, the lubricant is normally returned to the crankcase through drains which are located at points spaced from the drain opening. Thus the contaminants may accumulate in areas where they can not easily be drained along with the lubricant that is being replaced.
It is, therefore, a still further object of this invention to provide an improved arrangement for the drain plug of an engine lubricating system so that the area around the drain plug is in the path of lubricant circulation so as to collect accumulated particles around the drain plug and to permit their removal when the lubricant is changed.